The Collins Bridge was a bridge that crossed

Biscayne Bay Biscayne Bay () is a lagoon with characteristics of an estuary located on the Atlantic coast of South Florida. The northern end of the lagoon is surrounded by the densely developed heart of the Miami metropolitan area while the southern end is la ...

between

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...

and

Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...

. At the time it was completed, it was the longest wooden bridge in the world. It was built by farmer and developer John S. Collins (1837–1928) with financial assistance from automotive parts and racing pioneer

Carl G. Fisher Carl Graham Fisher (January 12, 1874 – July 15, 1939) was an American entrepreneur. He was an important figure in the automotive industry, in highway construction, and in real estate development. In his early life in Indiana, despite fam ...

. Fisher, an auto parts magnate, loaned Collins $50,000 in 1911 ($ million, adjusted for current inflation) to complete the bridge when Collins' money ran out. Collins, then 75 years old, traded Fisher of land on Miami Beach for the loan. The wooden

toll bridge A toll bridge is a bridge where a monetary charge (or '' toll'') is required to pass over. Generally the private or public owner, builder and maintainer of the bridge uses the toll to recoup their investment, in much the same way as a toll road ...

opened on June 12, 1913, providing a critical link to the newly established Miami Beach, formerly accessible only by a ferry service. The total cost of the Collins Bridge was in excess of $150,000. The middle of the bridge had a steel lattice truss design, while the ends were primarily wooden, as well as the deck being wooden for the entire length. The original wooden causeway was replaced in 1925 by a series of

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vau ...

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable ...

s and renamed the

Venetian Causeway The Venetian Causeway crosses Biscayne Bay between Miami on the mainland and Miami Beach on a barrier island in the Miami metropolitan area. The man-made Venetian Islands and non-bridge portions of the causeway were created by materials which ca ...

References

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Historical information
Bridges completed in 1913 Bridges completed in 1925 Former toll bridges in Florida Lattice truss bridges in the United States 1913 establishments in Florida 1925 disestablishments in Florida Road bridges in Florida Wooden bridges in the United States